The appropriate use of number is the core of achieving good writing in English. As it is in the use of tense and person (as discussed in the previous episodes), inconsistency in the use of number will render the sentences in which the error is committed ungrammatical. That could jeopardise candidates’ chances of securing good grades in writing if they made that mistake in an examination. Inconsistency in the use of number should be avoided in other forms of formal (and even informal) writings, too. In essence, explaining the correct use of this aspect of writing is considered a worthwhile exercise.
Number, like many other English words, has different meanings, depending on its context of use. What readily comes to mind when it is mentioned is a word for a specific amount or quantity. This is at variance with its use in a grammatical context. In this case, number indicates whether a subject or a verb is singular or plural. For nouns, plurality is usually determined by the addition of the suffix “s” to the noun. Other nouns that do not take the suffix “s” to indicate their plural status are called irregular nouns. Examples of singular and plural nouns are boy (boys), man (men), wife (wives), chief (chiefs), foot (feet), box (boxes), baby (babies), essay (essays), buffalo (buffaloes), piano (pianos), child (children), ox (oxen), louse (lice), goose (geese), cattle (no singular form), oats (no singular form) and trousers (no singular form). Some singular nouns (like linguistics, economics, physics, etc.) have the letter “s” embedded in them.
We can also have a plural subject when two or more nouns are joined by “and” to form the subject, as in:
Shuaibu and Adelaja
Afolayan, Chinedu, Amodu and Aisha
Where number is used to indicate singular and plural subjects through personal pronouns, the following can be identified:
1st Person Singular Pronoun: I
1st Person Plural Pronoun: We
2nd Person Singular/Plural Pronoun: You
3rd Person Singular Pronouns: He, She, It
3rd Person Plural Pronoun: They
The choice of number for verbs is different from what is obtainable in the case of nouns. While a singular verb takes the suffix “s,” a plural verb does not. Singular verbs (in their simple present form) usually follow third-person singular subjects. Singular and plural verbs are differentiated in the following examples:
1. The boy buys a beautiful bag.
* The boy (singular subject)
* buys (singular verb)
2. Kunle enjoys the movie
* Kunle (singular subject)
* enjoys (singular verb)
3. The boys buy beautiful bags.
* The boys (plural subject)
4. Ahmed, Chike and Dauda enjoy the movie.
* Ahmed, Chike and Dauda (plural subject)
* enjoy (plural verb)
Consistency in the use of number through verbs can also be demonstrated in the following auxiliary verbs:
Be: am (singular), is (singular), was (singular), are (plural), were (plural)
Do: does (singular), do (plural)
Have: has (singular), have (plural)
Examples
I am a Nigerian.
* I (singular subject)
am (singular verb)
The judges have thrown away the case
* The judges (plural subject)
* have (plural auxiliary verb)
Consistency in the use of number (as well as in the use of tense and person as mentioned in the previous episode) shows that the various elements of a sentence in English are not in isolation to one another. Formal relationships exist among them. Candidates in national and international examinations need to be aware of these relationships and take them into consideration when they construct sentences, paragraphs and essays to achieve clear and coherent writing. By observing the relationships, they will create agreement among the grammatical elements that make up a complete text. Since examples for demonstrating this grammatical union are inexhaustible, next week’s episode of Linguists’ Forum will focus on Concord. The discussion will then be extended to further foreground the interlinks among the various grammatical elements in English.
Lateef Iyanda Kugbayi, PhD
Senior Lecturer
Department of English Language
Zamfara State University
Talata Mafara
lateefkugbayi19@gmail.com/+2347032985052